Rubber heel.



Patented Dec. 15, 1908.

6 I H I W -4 1 K 59 2 A;

- j dw i a citizen of the United States, residing at struction which can be variedin shape andiiNiTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ARTHUR M. LEIGHTON, OF AVON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO WILLIAM-BIARNOLD, OF

NORTH ABI-NGTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

RUBBER HEEL.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ARTHUR M. LEIGHTON,

Avon, in the county of Norfolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented an. Im' rovement in Rubber Heels, of which the ollowing description, in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification, like letters on the drawings representing like arts. One of the difficulties experienced with the usual rubber heel is that it is apt not to be the identical shape and size of the heel of the,

shoe receiving it; and on account of the extreme difiiculty of aring'down soft rubber the heels are usual yleft with a slight disjointed appearance, projecting slightly be yond the rand or adjacent portion of the heel part of the shoe. Accordingly, I aim to obviate this difiiculty by providing a heel consize to fit slightly varying heels; and to this end I. provide such a structure as to permit the heel to be contracted or expanded peri h' orally at its sides prior to its being secure in.

- place.

I prefer to provide for the expansion or contraction by forming a highly yielding... h, central longitudinal portion, preferab arched, so that it-is not requiredto streto in order to permit the change desired. As this construction necessitates more or less of a hole or cavity on the inside of the heel, I provide a thin wall or barrier for damming or closing this cavity toprevent the entrance of water and mud.

In'the drawings, in which I have shownone embodiment of my invention, Figure lis a to plan view of the heel'ready to be applie Fig. 2 is a bottom plan view thereof; Fig. 3 is a transverse horizontal section taken on the dotted line, Fig 6; Fig. 4 is a front .end elevation; Fig. 5 is a side elevation, 4 partly broken away; Fig. 6 is a transverse sectional view; and Fig. 7 is a detail showing one of the fasteners used with the heel.

code not objectionable, asit is self-clearing of mud, etc. which may enter momentarily,

and forming an internal pocket or cavity 4,

which maybe of any convenient sha e, as;v

theshape thereofis not essential, all t at is essential being to have the cavity so that the Specification of L'etteru Patent. 7 Application as May 1, 1901. Serial No. 311,249.

ma mal). 1: 190a.

heel is contracted. At't'he frontendof cavity 4 I provide a thin dam or wall diaphragm may enter the same when the" capable of stretching slightly if the heel be ex anded, and Of bending g y if the heel is to be" con?- tracted, while serving at all times to close the cavity against the entrance of mud and water, inasmuch as the top edge fifiof said wall or dam is flush with the'top surface of the heel and hence fits tightly against the ad'acent leather of the shoe. i 1" 0 hold the heel unyieldi'ngly in its desired contracted or expanded osltlon, I provide, in connection with the astenin means, a heavy wire or other normally sti tainer 7 embedded in the solid rubber of the heel, preferably adjacent the periphery thereof, as is clearly shown in Figs. 3 and 6. When the wire is'sim 1y heavy annealed wireit helps to hold the'hee' in'desired contracted position.

The shoemaker simply presses the heel firmly edgewise until the wire is bent and thereby, caused'to retain the rubb'erfo'r the time being- -in the desired contracted position until the fastenings can be passed through the heel to retain it permanently in said position on the s oe. Secured at intervals to this shape-retamer 7 are anchor pieces, herein shown as metal plates 8 having perforated ears enmgs gaging the wire and cut away at their opposite, sides to form a narrow neck portion 10, these H-shaped anchor plates also preferably having upwardly projecting legs or tangs 11 for still further holding-into the rubber and aiding in the. process, of molding the heel. On each side of the neck 10 of these H- shaped plates perforations 12, 13 are provided, preferably connected at the bottom of-the heel as indicated at 14 to receive a staple fastener 15, see Fig. 7. It will be under"- stood, however, that nails may be used in the usual manner if preferred, and also that I am not limited to the plates 10, as any other a means of aiding the nails in holdin the heel under tension may be rovided. t will be understood that the desirabilit of some such special anchoring means for t e nails is duein part to the fact that the contraction or pressing toward each other of the sides of the eel causes the rubber to produce a constant ex anding tendency or tension in the heel, so- :that if no special anchoring means were pro- 'vided, this tendency wouid in time cause the nails to cut into vtheimbber, 'theroby enlarg ing the holes so that the heel might come loose. The anchoring means Whieh I have provided serve to distribute the holding strain over substantially the entire heel in' stead of bringing all the strain on that portion of the rubber which is in direct touch with the fastening nail or staple. lhave found, moreover, that a staple is far preferable to a nail, as it binds a considerable portion of the rubber in compressed relation to the heel part of the shoe. It will also be understood that the number of fastenersmay be less 'or greaterthan is shown, and that I amnot .limited in fact to any precise details as shown, as my invention in its broader aspects is applicable to any of the usual kinds of rubber eels.

In use, the shoemaker first fastens one side of the heel to the shoe, being careful to lay the adjacent edge of the heel in absolutely exact alinement withth adjacent edge of the shoe-heel or heel part. fastened immovably oneside of the rubber heel, he then springs the opposite side of the rubber heel into absolutely exact alinement with the remaining portion of the shoe heel or heel part, and immediately drives the stales or other fasteners through the rubber eel into the shoe at that side and about the remaining unfastened ortionof the rubber heel, the result being t at the heel is at once and uickly brought into absolutely true smoot alinement and finish with the rest of the shoe heel or heel -part.

My invention not only saves all trimming of heels and enables the shoemaker to turn out a neat finished rubber-heeled shoe, but

I on account of it there is no need of keeping so many sizes on hand. This is of great practical importance to the small cobbler .or country shoemaker, as he can use the same heel for a number of diiferent sizes simply b pressing the sides of the heel toward eac other or springing them apart according to the requirements of any given case.

Having described my invention, whatl Having thus claim as new and desire to secure .by Letters Patent, is: v

1. A boot heel of resilientmaterial, having a medial highly contractible and expansible region extending to the breastof the heel, and anchoring means extending along the sides of the heel, capable of bending freely at the back of the heel to permit the sides. of the heel to be brought readily toward each other or separated as desired, adapted to cooperate with fastenings to hold the sides of the heel .in distorted position when desired.

' and fastener receiving anchors connected to said wire.

4. A boot heel, having along its lon itudi-' nal middle a .thinyielding integra diaphragm located in an intermediate plane between the to and bottom of the bee mitting the eel to be contracted edgewise.

5. A boot heel, having along its longitudinal middle a thin yielding diaphragm upwardly arched in cross section for permitting the heel to be contracted edgewise.

6. A boot heel, having along its longitudinal middle a thin yielding diaphragm for permitting the heel to be contracted edgewise,

and a thin flexible dam at and 'above the front end of said diaphragm for preventing the entrance of moisture and mud.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses,

ARTHUR IVLLEIGHTON.

Witnesses:

Gno. H. MAXWELL, WM. J. PIKE.

for per- 

